Okay. This started out as a drabble to 'Just A Dream' by Nelly and then somehow turned into this. I'm not quite sure how.
"Sorry, Rose Weasley cannot answer the phone right now. Please leave a message after the beep…" A beep sounded a few scant seconds later and he opened his mouth to apologize—to confess—to beg for forgiveness…
But he couldn't.
He closed the muggle appliance and sighed heavily, closing his eyes and attempting to nurse his growing headache.
He hadn't meant for it to end this way.
There was no way to make it up to her, he knew the loss was far too strong. Albus had died. He hadn't been able to get his friend out in time and he had died and it had been his fault for attempting to go up against someone way stronger than him.
He didn't even know why Albus had taken the fall for him, why he had thrown himself in the way. Probably because Albus had that damned hero complex he got from his dad.
He tried again and the little device apologized again.
"R… Rose. I didn't mean… I know you don't want to talk to me right now…"
An understatement.
Her tearstreaked face had been almost as bad as Albus' lifeless eyes.
"Just… please. Pick up. I'm begging you, I need to talk to you. I know this isn't much but I have… I'm so sorry. I shouldn't—"
The phone made a clicking noise and when he looked at the screen it seemed the call had ended. He'd run out of time, too busy trying to keep his voice from thickening. Shortly after, however, it rang. Before he could say hello, her voice—much rougher than before, probably due to crying, said, "It's not your fault, Scorpius."
But it was. It was and they both knew it.
"I just need to… to be alone for a while. He… he wasn't just my cousin, he was my best friend. I've known him my whole life. We did everything together. Hell, I wouldn't even know you if it wasn't for him being a Slytherin."
He managed to say, "But it was my fault we went to that damn place. And if I hadn't opened my fat mouth he'd still be here. He… he shouldn't have been a Slytherin."
"He sacrificed himself for us, Scorpius." Her voice was now strained and she was probably going to cry again. Not that he wasn't. He was definitely ready to cry. "And if he shouldn't be a Slytherin, neither should you. You have the loyalty of a Hufflepuff."
"Not a Gryffindor?" He tried to sound lighthearted but his throat was clogged so it sounded more upset than it was meant to.
"No. Not a Gryffindor. You're much too openminded for that."
How, even with everything so bloody wrong could she still get him to smile?
"We're going to make it through this, Scorpius. We have to. For Albus." She took in a deep breath and he could hear her swallow, obviously trying not to break down. "Just… just give me a few days. I need to… It's still… It hurts."
Finally the first few tears slipped down his cheeks. "It does."
"We can do this." She repeated, "We can do this."
"You don't have to be strong for me, Rose." He proclaimed shakily, "We're both bloody crying already, aren't we?" She didn't reply but he could hear a sniff. "I can understand if you never want to speak to me again."
She cracked, "No! I don't want that at all, you git! Don't make me hunt you down! I need you for this, you can't leave!"
Shock momentarily numbed his pain before he realized she was the same as him.
She blamed herself, too.
"I won't, Rose. I'm right here."
Albus, Rose, and Scorpius. The unlikely trio. Fate's joke.
"And… And he is, too."
Not even death could end it.